End Of An Era

Today is officially the last day I utter the phrase, “United has some of my favorite miles.” True, they are still valuable. Yes, I know there will still be many good uses for them. But you see my friends, I’m the type who gets upset. I react strongly. I don’t have it in me to “grin and bear it.” If you use these miles to book premium cabin partner flights, you might want to get that last pleasant booking done today. Here is the current United chart, and here’s the one that starts tomorrow.  As you can see, things are about to become much less pleasant. Next up is Southwest in 2 months…

Cars And Rides

  1. A nice Enterprise deal here. $9.99/day on Friday-Monday rentals in February. This is for “neighborhood locations,” so no airports are included.
  2. Uber’s extra $10 for signup ends Friday (in case you’ve somehow found a way to avoid Uber this long). Click here for $20, download the app, and add promo code KALEB for $20. If you’re riding before Friday, try code OCHOLIDAYS for $50. I also won an instant $25 code here. Many more codes are listed here.
  3. I haven’t actually used Lyft before. Why? I think it’s pretty obvious, but I’m in love with another company (Hint: it rhymes with Shmoober). But if you’re so inclined, grab $25 for signing up for Lyft. Also, they seem to be giving away some free rides. 
  4. After many emails (some more passive-aggressive than others), I admit I was wrong. Auto Slash is not totally useless. I was just cranky about their recent turn for the worse. In reality, it’s not actually their fault. I should really be upset with the car rental companies. My bad. Please forgive me and my moody ways. (MileNerd hangs his head in shame).

Deal Overflow

Man, they just keep coming this week…

  • Buy no-fee $200 Amex gift cards through April 1st. Purchase up to $5,000 per order. Promo code HEARTCC1 should automatically get entered. Buy them through a shopping portal for more cash back. BigCrumbs is giving you 2.1% back right now.
  • Hey Companion Pass-ers, Southwest is about to go international!
  • American Airlines’ newest portal bonus is 1,500 miles when you spend $450.
  • A rare credit card post for you Canadians out there. 25,000 Amex Membership Rewards points for our neighbors up north.
  • Get 30% off some Radisson hotels.
  • A very big bonus hike for that American Airlines Executive card I mentioned a few days ago. It’s now good for 100,000 miles. Yeah, the annual fee is still $450, but it’s a lot more tempting now. With the miles, a $200 credit, and lounge access…it’s worth some serious consideration.

Tuesday Topics

  • Howdy Texans, y’all can line up for 20,000 free Spirit miles today and tomorrow. And, yes, I’ll stop saying y’all.
  • Hilton continues to unimpress. The 1-to-2 Virgin to Hilton rate on transfers will end February 5th. The new rate will be 1-to-1.5. 
  • IHG’s PointBreak hotels are out. A bargain for an average hotel room at 5,000 points a night.
  • Get 25% off some hotel rooms from CheapTickets using code CHEAPTASTIC.
  • $100 off stays of $150 or more for first time users on Airbnb is still working for some using code sundance_airbnb.

2 Improved Card Bonuses

The Virgin Atlantic card from Bank of America is back up to the usual 50,000-mile bonus. It was half of that for a while, so it’s nice to see this back.. Highlights include:

  • 45,000 miles after spending $2,500 in 3 months.
  • 5,000 more miles for adding 2 authorized users.
  • Bank of America cards can be very, very churnable for many people. 

The Citibank American Airlines Executive card is up to 75,000 miles. The usual bonus is 60,000, so this is a good little bump. Things to pay attention to:
  • Spend $7,500 in 3 months for the bonus.
  • It comes with Admirals Club lounge access. A big bonus for some. Free checked bag and priority boarding are nice too for those without status.
  • The annual fee is a very steep $450. Too rich for my blood, but to each their own. Still plenty of less expensive American cards out there.